Drawing men for fashion illustration and menswear fashion design sketching is a pretty easy transition if you are comfortable drawing women already. ( I HOPE THE TIMELAPSE VIDEOS I’VE PROVIDED FOR YOU ON THIS PAGE HELP!)
I host live practice sessions every week on zoom in Fashion Sketch Group!
Drawing men for fashion illustration just requires a few key adjustments to your basic routine of proportions, which I’ll cover below.
BUT IF YOU’VE NEVER DRAWN AT ALL, it’s still not out of reach.
Practice is everything, and my Model Drawing Magic online course teaches targeted exercises for model drawing that you apply to any size, shape, or category of figure!
For your convenience, here’s my MENSWEAR FASHION pinterest board to sketch from.
BUT… since I always recommend mastering the FIGURE first, I would suggest working from my
MENSWEAR FIGURES pinterest board FIRST to get you started studying and practicing the nuances of men’s figures for men’s fashion design and fashion illustration.
DRAWING Men: Fashion for fashion design illustration
The most important adjustments that stand out to me when drawing men become very obvious compared to drawing women in fashion.
I still use the plumbline/ balance line to balance my menswear fashion figure on his feet, and maximize the flow and feeling of movement without feeling like my figure is stiff or “tipping over”.
Other super useful tips /differences you will often find in the menswear model’s proportions for fashion illustration:
- bulkier, more defined CALF muscles
- bulkier bicep muscles and / or forearms.
- a wider neck, extending like a straight line down from the ear rather than tapering in from the ears like women’s figures
- squarer face and jawline
- a lower crotch and shorter leg compared to the upper body length.
- narrower pelvis or hips.
DRAWING MEN FOR FASHION: timelapses from live model sessions
Menswear fashion design: using figure croquis template
My menswear croquis on this resource page (or search for your own: Pret a Template has a nice basic menswear croquis. Or try this pin for a menswear croquis.
Once you have a basic menswear croquis template, or have created your own, you can either use it inside an art app like Tayasui sketches, Procreate or Adobe Fresco for digital fashion illustration or design sketching, OR you can simply lay a piece of lightweight paper over the pre-drawn basic figure and then use THAT BODY to design on.
The croquis template design drawing process can be so useful and quick because the body is already done, and freeing you to focus purely on design details, shapes, silhouettes and proportions.
And yet for some of us, or in certain situations, the creative process of creating and using posed figures to show and create designs is totally satisfying and worth the extra time.
An UNPOSED menswear croquis template is best for flat sketching and really FOCUSED designing
Drawing men using a POSED FIGURE (click to view my collection on Pinterest so you can sketch TODAY!) is better used for menswear fashion illustration and showing the mood, telling a story about the design you are creating or describing..
Posed figures are so expressive! That’s another reason why i create Model Drawing Magic course
DRAWING MEN: Fashion design creative croquis sketchbook
When I was a student at Parsons School of Design ,( where I’ve been teaching fashion design since 1997), I created this sketchbook/ “croquis book” (view below) for developing one of my menswear fashion design croquis projects. ( I later freelanced in design at Banana Republic and London Fog, among others).
No, I didn’t use a template in my menswear sketchbook, I sketched each figure by hand, (freehand sketching) so I could become more comfortable drawing men, and you can see that in the video below.
I hope that inspires you to dive deep into fashion drawing and fashion illustration!
The fashion design schools are replacing these essential courses with computer courses, which don’t hold the same physical, tactile experience and joyful freedom of exploring your ideas (without clicking a mouse all day glued to a screen).
I hope this has helped you get started on your way.
Visit the COURSES tab in the header menu to view courses open now, all dedicated to the arts of fashion design for men, women and children…. of all sizes, shapes and styles.
Based on my 30 years teaching at Parsons plus a many working in the NYC fashion industry, I love to pass on the skills and craftsmanship that have brought me so much joy and fulfillment.
The magic, expression, creativity and livelihood in my life, so that you can do the same.
You love fashion for a reason!
Let me know how it’s going!
Love,
Laura Volpintesta, founder, Fashion Illustration Tribe. Since 2013
Fashion Design Professor, Parsons School of Design, since 1997
Creator of their first studio fashion design online course in 2008!
Author , the Language of Fashion Design: 26 Principles Every Fashion Designer Should Know/ Rockport.
